100 Days of Nature: Days 1 to 28!

28 days ago, @BBCSpringwatch on Twitter set the challenge of photographing nature for 100 days. So I decided to take up the challenge. After 28 days, it occured to me that I should be placing these photos on my blog. So here they come.

Day 1: A hoverfly, Volucella bombylans, that mimics a bumblebee. This is the first time I've seen this species. It was on a Buddleja bush near my home in Stevenage.

Day 2: A juvenile Blue Tit, Cyanistes caeruleus, on the bird feeder in my front garden.

Day 3: A Lesser Water Boatman, Corixa punctata, in a pond at Heartwood Forest, Sandridge.

Day 4: A Beech, Fagus sylvatica, near Nettleden, Hertfordshire.

Day 5: A Wood Avens, Geum urbanum, in my front garden.

Day 6: A Common Blue Damselfly, Enallagma cyathigerum, at Fairlands Valley Park, Stevenage.

Day 7: A Riband Wave, Idaea aversata, in my house.

Day 8: A Wild Teasel, Dipsacus fullonum, at Fairlands Valley Park, Stevenage.

Day 9: A fungus on an English Oak, at Gunnels Wood, Stevenage.

Day 10: A Comma, Polygonia c-album, at St Leonard's Church, Sandridge.

Day 11: A Great Mullein, Verbascum thapsus, near Luton Airport.

Day 12: Greenbottles, Lucilia sp., at Fairlands Valley Park, Stevenage.

Day 13: A Harebell, Campanula rotundifolia, at Six Hills Common, Stevenage.

Day 14: A White-lipped Snail, Cepaea hortensis, at Great Ashby District Park, near Stevenage.

Day 15: A Mallard, Anas platyrhynchos, at Fairlands Valley Park, Stevenage.

Day 16: A bug at Fairlands Valley Park, Stevenage.

Day 17: Hawthorn berries, Crataegus monogyna, near Wheathampstead, Hertfordshire.

Day 18: Sawfly larvae, in Sandridge, Hertfordshire.

Day 19: A grasshopper, at Fairlands Valley Park, Stevenage.

Day 20: A Pill Woodlouse, Armadillidium vulgare, at Great Ashby District Park, near Stevenage. My first ever photo of a crustacean.

Day 21: A moth at Great Ashby District Park, near Stevenage.

Day 22: A female Wood Duck, Aix sponsa, at Barclay Park, Hoddesdon. The first time I've seen this bird.

Day 23: A male tachinind fly, Phasia hemiptera, at Great Ashby District Park, near Stevenage. Another first for me.

Day 24: A Damson, Prunus domestica subsp. insititia, near Rushden.

Day 25: A Speckled Wood, Pararge aegeria, at Jersey Farm, Sandridge.

Day 26: A Small Tortoiseshell, Aglais urticae, near my home in Stevenage.

Day 27: A small earthworm at Great Ashby District Park, near Stevenage.

Day 28: A bug, Corizus hyoscyami, at Fairlands Valley Park, Stevenage.

Egyptian Goose (Alopochen aegyptiacus)

Wooburn Green-Little Marlow 060: Egyptian Goose (Alopochen aegyptiacus), a photo by Peter aka anemoneprojectors on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
22 September 2013 was the first day I've ever seen an Egyptian Goose (Alopochen aegyptiacus). I was walking along the River Thames in Buckinghamshire, and there were a few on the river, and then this was posed quite nicely at the water's edge. I've since seen this species in London, near Osterley.

Skylark (Alauda arvensis)

Skylark (Alauda arvensis), a photo by Peter aka anemoneprojectors on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
I see Skylarks (Alauda arvensis) a lot. Usually in the sky, as fairly faint dots, singing their pretty song. I usually hear them before I can see them. Occasionally, I see a blur of one taking off from a field I'm waking past. On 16 June 2013, I visited Heartwood Forest, Sandridge, Hertfordshire, I saw lots of Skylarks in flight and wondered if I went slowly and scanned the tops of the grass and tree saplings, I might see one at rest. I was lucky enough to spot this one and I took a series of shots. It was quite far away but I was very happy.

Jay (Garrulus glandarius)

Jay (Garrulus glandarius), a photo by Peter aka anemoneprojectors on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
I was photographing some Speedwells in District Park, Great Ashby, Hertfordshire, on 26 May 2013, when I got up to look at a Scorpion Fly. As I stood up, I saw this Jay (Garrulus glandarius) and then spent a good six minutes photographing it. I was so pleased to get a shot of a Jay because I think they tend to be quite shy. My book says they're "wary" and they are more often heard than seen. I was surprised by how close I could get.

Wren (Troglodytes troglodytes)

Wren (Troglodytes troglodytes), a photo by anemoneprojectors (through the backlog) on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
I've had a Wren (Troglodytes troglodytes) visiting my garden since February 2013 (at least that's the first time I ever saw it), and it has become a semi-regular visitor. On 16 May 2013, this one was spreading its wings on the fence and also when I saw it on the ground. Someone on Twitter suggested it might be a juvenile.